Art of warp knitting



h ,1942. F. J. KAUFMANN ART OF WARP KNITTING Filed Dec. 17, 1941 IN V EN TOR.

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py'mann 'IITTURNEY Patented Oct. 13, 1942 "umrao STATES PATENT OFFICE ART or w iizi i rmr'rmc Frank'J. Kaufmann, Tribes Hill, N. Y. Application placement-1, 1941, sem Noe42a27r- 8 Claims.

This invention relates to tricot warp knitting machines in which two or more threads are drawn from two or more warp beams that have different surface speeds to supply'difierent lengths of thread running at different speeds to be knitted into the same length of cloth during a predetermined cycle of knitting movements of the machine. I

The usual, but not by any means the only, cycle in such machines is one consisting of four hundred and eighty knitting movements and such cycle as well as the length of cloth produced during such cycle is generally referred to as a rack. The expression "cycle of knitting movements as hereinafter used is intended to cover not only. a rack of four hundred and eighty movements but any other cycle consisting of a predetermined number of such movements and is also intended to include one or more racks.

In machines of the character indicated, different lengths of thread drawn from different warp beams rotating atdifferent surface speeds, are

knitted into the same length of cloth in order qualities thereof iform throughout the same web or as nearly uniform as possible, but it is difficult to obtain such uniformity for the following reasons: The threads are drawn from the warp-beams by the knitting movements of the machine, and the withdrawal of unequal lengths of thread is accomplished by applying different brake tension to the different beams, in a man her well understood, so thatthe beams will have different surface speeds in response to the pulling action of the unwinding threads.- .By surface speed of the warp beams is meant the surface speed of the outerconvolutions of the material carried by the beams. At the beginning of the knitting operation, the brake tension on the several beams is therefore adjusted differently to permit the desired relative difference in surface speed and to allow difierent lengths of threads to be withdrawn from said beams during the knitting movements of the machine, and this difference in lengths of thread should be retained throughout the knitting of the web, if the latter is to have uniform qualities. It will be understood, however, that, as the threads are unwound.

' the diameters of the beams become smaller and fit smaller and this has to be compensated for by adjusting the tension on the beams at rather frequent intervals. Heretofore, the judgment of the operator based on haphazard methods has been relied upon to obtain the proper amount of com-'- pensation but almost invariably, at the end of a run, a considerable amount of thread will be left over on one beam when the thread on another beam has been used up. That means waste and it also means a certain amount of non-uniformity in the qualities of the web or a departure from the standard desired. This problem is a long-standing one in the art, and it is-the ob-' ject of this invention to provide a method and means for more accurately ascertaining, during the'knitting operation, if the beams are rotating at the right speeds to feed the proper lengths of thread, and to ascertain the effect of any adjustment of the brake tensions on the speeds of the beams.

The method and means of the invention are illustrated in a preferred form in the accompanying drawing in which: a

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view in perspective of certain parts of a tricot warp knitting machine with the devices relating to the present invention shown associated therewith; and

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary detail view in elevation of a part of the counting mechanism emplayed in the invention.

The warp beams (of which there may be two or more) are shown conventionally and are indicated at I and 2, said beams being provided with friction brakes 3 and l, receiving brake bands 5 and 8, one end of each of which bands is anchored at l or II on framework 9, and the other end of each of which bands has a threaded portion III or "I I, passing freely through an open-- mg I! or ii in said framework. Wing nuts ll- 01' I5 engage said portions ill or II and, with framework .9 acting as an abutment, serve to allow the operator to independently vary the tension of the brake bands against the friction brakes in a manner well understood in the art.

A indicates a marking station and B and C denote two observation stations. I! is a thread drawn from warp beam I and is guided over bars l6 and I1, through guide ll past marking station A, through guide l-Q, through guide 132 to observation station 0 and thence through guide CI to the so-called slay point of the knitting ma- 20 to observation station B and thence through guide Bl to the slay point of the machine. Z indicates the cloth produced by the needles (not shown) in knitting the threads. It will, of course, be understood that there are a great many more threads coming from the warp beams but, as it' is unnecessary to describe the well-known knitting operation of the machine, such other threads can be disregarded for the purpose of the present disclosure. It is also obvious that more than two warp-beams can be employed, in which case a thread from each warp beam would be led past the marking station to appropriate observation stations.

2| indicates the main shaft of the machine, here making one revolution to each knitting movement, and this shaft carries a cam 22 that actuates an automatic counting or registering device, in this instance by the following means: Cam 22 actuates a bell-crank 23 that is mounted to rock on support 24, and said bell-crank, by means of cam surface 25, actuates a lever 28, pivoted at 21, carrying a pivoted pawl 28 at its mounted on shaft 30, which ratchet wheel is engaged by pawl 28 to be intermittently advanced thereby, one step at a time for each knitting movement or each revolution of shaft 2|. 3| is a stop pawl for ratchet wheel 28. 32 is a pin or tooth carriedby ratchet wheel 28, which pin 32 engages a ratchet wheel 33 rotatably mounted on shaft 34, said ratchet wheel 33 advancing one step or tooth to each revolution of ratchet wheel 29.; 35 is a stop pawl for ratchet wheel 33. The counting device, represented by ratchet wheel 83, thus registers a predetermined cycle of knitting movements of the machine, which cycle, for purposes of illustration, may consist of four hundred and eighty knitting movements. cycle is called a rack and corresponds to a section or rack" Z| of cloth.

At marking station A is located a marking device which, here, is constructed as follows: 38 is a fountain, containing a washable or removable ink or dye, located in rear of threads X and Y as viewed in Fig. 1, and this fountain is provided with a wick 31 of absorbent material. 38 is a rock-shaft, mounted in bearings 38, and carrying a spring arm 48 provided at its outer end with a marker 4| located on the outside of threads X and Y as viewed in Fig. 1. Marker 4| is located opposite wick 31, and running threads X and Y normally pass freely between said marker and wick without being touched by either. When, however, rock-shaft 38 is actuated, marker 4| strikes a quick blow at threads X and Y bringing them momentarily against wick 31 and thus marks both of the running threads simultaneously without interfering with their advancin movement. By reason of spring arm 48, marker 4| immediately rebounds and does not again touch the threads until rock-shaft 38 is again actuated.

Suitable means, controlled by counting device or ratchet 33, are provided to actuate, at regularly recurring intervals, rock-shaft 38 and thus the marking device, which means, in this instance, are as follows: Mounted fast on a rockshaft 42 is an arm 43 having a cam surface 44, and this arm is pivotally connected at its outer end to a rod 45 that, in turn, is pivotally connected to link 46 mounted fast on rock-shaft 38. A spring 41, anchored at 48 on the framework and connected to arm 43, tends to urge arm 43 into its lowermost position and, through the connections Ratchet 33 carries a pin 49 that, once to each revolution of ratchet 33 and therefore once to each predetermined cycle of knitting movements free end. 28 indicates a ratchet wheel rotatably- Such a described, rock-shaft 38 into one position.

of the machine, engages cam 44 and lifts arm 43 against the tension of spring 41. Cam-44 has a gradual rise and a sudden drop as shown and, in advancing one tooth or step, ratchet 33 first lifts said arm 43 and then abruptly drops it, thereby actuating rock-shaft 38 and, by reason of spring arm 48, gives a sudden jerk to marker 4| causing said marker to engage and mark the running threads. At the same time, rock-shaft 42 is moved by arm 43 causing hammer 50 to strike gong 5| thus notifying the operator that a predetermined cycle of knitting movements has been completed. Ratchet 33 carries a second pin or tooth 52 that engages ratchet 53 to advance it one tooth and thus register the completion of a rack" on a dial, but this part of the mechanism need not be described further.

The method of the invention is as follows: Let us assume, for the purpose of illustration, that the length of thread X, to be supplied during a predetermined cycle of knitting movements,

. is sixty inches, and that the length of thread Y,

to be supplied during the same cycle, is forty inches, and that these two threads (and of course numerous other similar threads) are to be knitted into a cloth section XI of definite length such as six inches. It will be apparent that thread X -must run at a higher speed than thread Y and that, therefore, warp beam will have a different surface speed from that of warp beam 2. The relative angular speeds of the two warp beams will depend upon the difference in diameter of said beams and could under certain conditions be equal. Observation station B is located a distance (as thread Y runs) from marking station A equal to that length of thread Y which is to be supplied during one predetermined cycle of knitting movements, and observation station C is located a distance (as thread X runs) from marking station A equal to that length of thread X which is to be supplied during the same predetermined cycle of knitting movements. Threads X and Y, running at different speeds, are guided past marking'station A where they are simultaneously marked once to each predetermined beams rotate at speeds to supply the desired predetermined lengths of thread .during said cycle of knitting movements. If spots Xi and Y| do not arrive at observation stations C and B simultaneously, then the brake tension on the warp beam or beams is adjusted. to compensate for the deviation from the correct speed. Spots XI and Y| are due to arrive at the observation stations at the time the succeeding marking of the threads occurs at the marking-station. It could happen that said spots would arrive simultaneously at said observation stations and still be running at incorrect speeds, that is: earlier or later than the succeeding marking on the threads. 'I'o guard against this and other contingencies, gong 5| is provided, the sounding of which notiproximation. Observation stations B and C can be located in different positions, so long as their distance from marking station A, as the threads run, is equal to the lengths of thread desired during each cycle of knitting movements. Said observation stations could be located a distance from the slay point, as the'threads run, equal to the lengths of thread desired during each cycle of knitting movements, that is to say: observation stations and B could be equidistant, as the threads run, from marking station A and the slay point indicated diagrammatically adjacent sinkers Z2 by adot Z3. It is preferred, however, tohave said observation stations C and B as close as possible to the slay point of the machine in the manner shown in Fig. 1. of this view, it will be seen that at observation station B two guides are located, one marked Bl through which thread Y is guided directly downward to the slay point and, another, marked B2,

for guiding thread X to observation station C at which place a guide Cl is located through which said thread X is guided, From guide Cl said thread X is directed obliquely to the slay point, so that the path between Cl and the slay point is longer than the path between BI and the slay point, to thereby compensate for the difference in speed of the two threads. I

Although, as has been pointed out, numerous threads are fed from the warp beams, only two threads are in this instance markedjand the marking thus produced willshow itself in the cloth as at Y2 and X2. These two marks will be in alinement transversely of the cloth, and successive markings such asY2 or X2 will indicate a cloth section or rack 21 produced during each cycle of knitting movements. The. operator therefore has an additional check in that, while the cloth is on the run, he can measure the dis- From aninspection sponding to recurrent cycles of knitting movements or the machine; and guiding said threads so marked to two observation stations, one thread to one observation station and the other thread to the other observation station, over paths so differing inlength that, notwithstanding the difference in speed and length of the two threads, the marked portions of said threads will arrive simultaneously at the two observation stations after an interval corresponding to a cycle of knitting movements, provided said warp beams rotate at speeds to supply said predetermined lengths of thread during said cycle of knitting movements.

2. In the manufacture of cloth containing threads drawn from two warp beams to supply, during a predetermined cycle of knitting movements of the knitting machine, predetermined different lengths of thread to be knitted into the same predetermined length of cloth, the method of ascertaining the lengths of threads so fed and thus the speeds of said beams during said cycle of knitting movements, and of ascertaining the length of a section of cloth produced during any predetermined cycle of knitting movements, which consists in guiding two threads running at different speeds, one drawn from one and the other iromthe other of said warp beams, to a marking station; simultaneously marking saidtion and the other thread to the other observatance between two marks Y2 or' between two marks X2, and thus ascertain if a cloth section, produced during any previous cycles of knitting movements, is of the right-length-Jn the ,instance given, six inches. It will also now be apparent that spots or indication marks Y2 and X2 will enable the operator to count the number of sections 'of the cloth or web produced during a plurality of cycles of knitting movements as well as to ascertain the length of a cloth section produced during any cycle of knitting movements.

I claim:

.1. In the manufacture of cloth containing threads drawn from two warp beams to supply, during -a predetermined cycle of knitting movements 0! the knitting machine, predetermined different lengths of thread to be knitted into the same predetermined length of cloth, the method of ascertaining the lengths of threads so fed and thus the speeds of said beams during said'cycle of knitting movements, which consists in guiding two threads running at different speeds, one drawn from one and the other from the other of said warp beams, to a marking station; simultaneously marking said running threads at said same predetermined length of cloth, the methodtion station, over paths so differing in length that, notwithstanding the difierences in speed and length of the two threads, the marked portions of said threads will arrive simultaneously at the two observation stations after an interval corresponding to a cycle of knitting movements,

provided said warp beams rotate at speeds to supply said predetermined lengths of thread during said cycle of knitting movements; and guiding said threads from the observation stations to the slay point of the machine over paths so differing in length that, notwithstanding the dinerences in speed and length of the two threads, the marked portions of said threads will appear in lateral alinement and at predetermined intervals in the cloth to thereby mark it into sections of a predetermined length.

3. In the manufacture of cloth containing threads drawn from two warp beams to supply, during a predetermined cycle of knitting movements of the knitting machine, predetermined different lengths of thread to be knitted into the of ascertaining the length of a section oi! cloth produced during any predetermined cycle of knitting movements which consists in guiding two threads running at different speeds, one drawn from one and the other from. the other of saidwarp beams, to a marking station; simultaneously marking said running threads at said station at regularly recurring intervals corresponding to recurrent cycles of knitting movements 01 the machine; guiding said threads so marked from said station to the slay point 01' the machine over paths so difiering in length that, notwithstanding the diflerences' in speed and length ofrthe two threads, the marked'portions ot said threads 'willappear in lateral alinement and at predetermined intervals in the cloth to thereby mark it station at regularly recurring intervals correinto sections of a predeterminedlength, provided cloth containing threads drawn from' two warpf beams that supply, during a predetermined cycle of knitting movements of the machine, difierent lengths of threa running at different speeds to be knitted into the same predetermined length of, cloth, a counting device to automatically registerthe number of knitting movements of the machine in a predetermined cycle oi! movements; means to guide two threads running at diflerent speeds, one drawn from one and the other from the other of said warp beams, to a marking station; a marking device, located at said marking station, to simultaneously mark said' two running threads; and means, controlled by said counting device, to actuate said marking device to mark said running threads at regularly recurring intervals.

' 5. In a knitting machine for the production of cloth containing threads drawn from two warp beams that supply, during a predetermined cycle of knitting movements of the machine, diflerent lengths of thread running at different speeds to be knitted into the same predetermined length of cloth, a counting device to automatically register the number of knitting movements of the machine in a predetermined cycle of movements; means to guide two threads running at diflerent speeds, one drawn from one and the other from the other of said warp beams, to a marking station; a marking device, located at said marking station, to simultaneously mark said two runnning threads; means, controlled by said counting device, to actuate said marking device to mark said running threads at regularly recurring intervals; and means to guide said threads so marked to two observation stations, one thread to one observation station and the other thread to the other observation station, over paths so diflering in length that, notwithstanding the differences in .speed and length of the two threads, the marked portions the two threads will arrive simultaneously at the two observation stations after an interval corresponding to a cycle of knitting movements, provided said warp beams rotate at speeds to supply said predeterminedlengths of thread during said cycle of knitting movements.

6. In a knitting machine for the production of cloth containing, threads drawn from two warp beams that supply, during a predetermined cycle of knitting movements of the machine, diflerent lengths of thread running at diflere'nt speeds to be knitted into the same predetermined length of cloth, a counting device to automatically register the number of knitting movements of the machine in a predetermined cycle of movements; a thread marking device located in the path of running thread; and means, controlled by said counting device, to actuate said marking device to mark said running thread at regularly recurring intervals corresponding to a cycle of knitting movements.

"I. In a knitting machine for the production of cloth containing threads drawn from two warp beams thatsupply, during a predetermined cycle of knitting movements of the machine, difierent lengths of thread running at diiierent speeds to be knitted into the same predetermined length of cloth, a counting device to automatically register the number of knitting movements oi the machine. in a predetermined cycle of movements; means to guide two threads running at different speeds, one drawn from one and the other from the other of said warp beams, to a marking station; a marking device, located at said marking station, to simultaneously mark said two running threads; means, controlled by said counting device, to actuate said marking device 'to mark said running threads at regularly recurring intervals; and means to guide said threads so marked to the slay point of the machine over paths so diilering in length that, notwithstanding the differences in speed and length oi the two threads, the marked portions of the two threads will arrive simultaneously at said slay point and will appear in the cloth as two series of indication marks, the marks in each series being spaced longitudinally.

8. In a knitting machine for the production of cloth containing threads drawn from two warp beams that supply, during a predeter-' mined cycle of knitting movements of the machine, diflerent lengths of thread running at diflerent speeds to be knitted into the same predetermined length of cloth, a counting device to automatically register the number of knitting movements of the machine in a predetermined cycle of movements; a thread marking device located in the path of running thread; means, controlled by said counting device, to actuate said marking device to mark said running thread at regularly recurring intervals corresponding to a cycle of knitting movements; and means to guide said thread to the slay point of the ma chine whereby the marks on the thread will appear as a series of indications, spaced longitudinally. in the knitted cloth. 

